Conventional counting devices for the art of hand knitting are designed to count rows in a pattern; thus, they generally consist of an apparatus that displays two digits side by side. Each digit can be one of a range of ten numerals from 0 to 9, inclusive. The first digit, shown on the left, represents the tens column of a number; and the second digit, shown on the right, represents the ones column of a number. Using these two digits, a conventional knitting counter can display one number from 0 to 99, inclusive. One such example of a conventional knitting counter is the “Circular Row Counter” from Boye; another such example is the “Knitting Counter ‘Kacha-Kacha’” from Clover.
Notwithstanding these conventional counters, however, most patterns do not provide users with instructions by row number, from start to finish. Instead, most patterns instruct users to undertake several actions, often at the same time, for a specified (but limited) number of repeats. A repeat can be a row, but it need not be. An instruction might read, for example, “Work the increase in Row 11 at each end of every 12th row 5 more times, continuing to work Rows 1 through 24 of Cable Pattern A as established.” In this instruction, the first repeat consists of rows between and including increase rows; the second repeat consists of the number of increase rows worked; and the third repeat consists of the rows in Cable Pattern A. In the foregoing example, as in the substantial majority of patterns, the repeats do not exceed 36, but the pattern asks a user to count several repeats at once. Conventional counting devices thus are not helpful for following patterns that include a repeating count. First, because they use only the numerals 0 through 9, conventional counting devices require two digits to express any number exceeding 9. Second, because they display only two digits, conventional counting devices do not provide users with the ability to display more than one number exceeding 9. Third, as a consequence, conventional counters do not provide users with the ability to count a first repeat exceeding 9 while also counting a second or third repeat that exceeds 9. Again, many patterns require users to maintain multiple counts at the same time.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a counting apparatus for knitting that can maintain multiple counts at the same time. There is a further need in the art for a counting apparatus that can maintain multiple counts for at least the numbers 1 through 36.